College Prep-How to Do it Sanely
| With Stress and Pressure | Sanely and Logically |
| Spend a bundle for SAT coaching. | Use CDs or online help for coaching. |
| Take SATS at least five times for best score. | Start with PSATs; then take SATs twice at the most. |
| Load up your teen's schedule with everything that looks impressive. | Let your teen select one or two activities he's passionate about |
| Visit dozens of colleges. | Use guidance department resources to narrow choices; then visit 4 or 5. |
Tips for Taming the Monster
Have faith in your child. How teens feel about themselves starts with the way they see themselves reflected in the eyes of a parent.
Step back. Let your teen succeed or fail on his own.
Encourage your teen to contact her high school counselor. These professionals can help students define appropriate goals.
Let them follow their passions. Participating in activities they enjoy is a lot more important than ones they feel like they have to be a part of.
Hand over the reins. When it comes to the college process, let your teen be in charge.
Penny Hastings, CA 12/10/08
Nowhere is the pressure more extreme than on the student-athlete who is expected to excel in the classroom as well as on the playing field, plus doing community service and whatever else they can fit into their harried schedules. Alan Davids makes a very good point. It's hard not to pressure kids to succeed when the colleges themselves seem to want more and more from the student applicants. However, there are thousands of colleges and universities in the U.S. Most kids will get a sound education from just about any one of them. What makes such a pressure cooker for kids is that they (and their parents) want them to go to the most elite. In athletics, too many parents and kids feel that the NCAA Division I schools are best. Not so! They are perhaps the most sports competitive, but many other schools have excellent athletic programs and top-notch academics. Students (and their parents) should open up their searches and stop pressuring themselves (their kids) to strive for the most well-known or prestigious schools.
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